1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a technique provided for storage systems or network systems connected to a communication network, the technique being one for monitoring the status of redundant power supplies, collecting failure information from each power supply, and transmitting the collected failure information to a monitoring source, such as a host computer, via a communication network.
2. Description of Related Art
A communication system in which each functional block has a power supply and is connected to a controller via a system bus is well known (see JP-7-7868). While failures that occur in each power supply are monitored in each functional block in that communication system, power supply failure information generated from the power supply in which a failure has occurred is detected by a detection means, power supply failure detection information is generated, the generated power supply failure detection information is transferred to the controller via a bus interface means and a bus for notifying failure information, and the controller identifies in which functional block the power supply failure has occurred. With that configuration, measures for early recovery can be taken by promptly giving an order to fix the functional block to a maintenance person.
An apparatus that gives notification of failure occurrence with lamp lighting when a power supply failure has occurred has also been proposed (see JP-A-6-133007). While power supply failures are monitored in that apparatus, information about power supply failure in a power supply is collected, the collected failure information is transferred to a monitoring package to output an order to light a lamp from the monitoring package, and power is supplied from a power supply in the monitoring package to a lamp to light the lamp. In other words, to prevent the situation where power is not supplied and the lamp is not lit because of power supply failure, power for the lamp in the power supply is supplied from a power supply in the monitoring package, which is different from the main power supply.
A currently attempted technique for storage systems is one where power is supplied to the disks from redundant power supplies, a failure monitor unit for monitoring the status of each power supply, collecting failure information from the power supply, and transferring the collected failure information to controllers is provided to each power supply, and, if a failure has occurred in any of the power supplies, an order to light a LED provided to the power supply in which the failure has occurred is output and the failure information is transferred to a host computer or a failure monitoring center via a communication network from the failure monitor unit in each controller.
If, in order to transmit power supply failure information to a monitoring source such as a host computer via a communication network, a failure monitor unit for collecting power supply failure information and a LED that lights when a failure has occurred are provided to each power supply; a failure monitor unit for identifying the failure information output from the failure monitor unit in each power supply is provided to each controller; and the identification result is transmitted from the failure monitor unit in the controller to a host computer via the communication network and LED lighting is controlled by the failure monitor unit in the controller, the LED can be lit in case of failure occurrence even if the failure has occurred in the power supply.
However, if a hardware/software failure has occurred in a section that collects power supply failure information or controls the LED in the failure monitor unit in the controller, e.g. if the controller has detected failure information by mistake, the LED does not light, and accordingly the controller has to be replaced. At worst, a user/maintenance person cannot recognize the failure in the controller. The controller is connected to a host computer or a user terminal. Accordingly, if the controller is replaced, all interfaces connected to that controller are blocked out, and so the system, or some sections of the system, may freeze. Moreover, if a redundant controller is not provided, the entire system is forced to stop. Furthermore, hardware/software preparation for the replaced controller for failure information collection and LED control is necessary.
The present invention has been made considering the above described problems in conventional techniques, and an object of the invention is to render replacement of the controller for identifying failure information unnecessary by each power supply monitoring its own status, recognizing the status of other power supplies, and exchanging monitoring results with other power supplies.